NCAA Conference Reports...

First up in my look through the NCAA Division 1 Conferences and teams is the America East Conference. The Conference is host to nine teams. Last season the Binghampton Bearcats ran the table and garnered the NCAA bid for the league but were overmatched in the first round of the NCAA tourney by ACC outfit Duke. The offseason for Binghamton has been tumultuous with six players being dismissed from the squad in September. The team opened the season with a 71-46 defeat at the hands of Pittsburgh. Kyrie Sutton was the lone bright spot in an otherwise dismal performance.

Boston University comes into the 2009-2010 campaign with an experienced squad that features four returning starters and nine seniors. The Terriers will be looking to better last seasons 17-13 record and finish near the top of the conference. Top returning players include John Holland and Corey Lowe. Thus far the team has failed to impress losing at Iona 82-73 and dropping their home opener to George Washington 69-59. Looming on the schedule after a trip to the O'Reilly Auto Parts Puerto Rico Tip-Off is the local derby with Harvard.

Next we travel to Vermont, the home of the Catamounts, a perennial contender for the conference title. With two time Conference Player of the Year Marques Blakely leading the way the team hopes to return to NCAA action in March after last seasons 24-9 outing. With no home games until December 13, the team has split their first two games of the season losing at Loyola, MD 79-66 before a narrow 58-57 win at Buffalo.

Albany will be looking to improve on last seasons 15-16 record with a host of new faces as the team said goodbye to two starters and four lettermen. The team will look for steady play from guard Tim Ambrose and improvement from center Brett Gifford. After opening losses to Syracuse 75-43 and Morgan State 69-65, the ‘Danes pulled off a one point 51-50 win over American. The team will face Alcorn State, Detroit and Robert Morris when they hast the 2K Classic from November 20. On December 30 the team will get to measure its progress against defending NCAA Champs North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

Stony Brook hopes to use last season’s 16-14 record as a building block for this year’s slate. The Sea Wolves look for improvement form the four returning starters from last year’s squad. The team has not disappointed thus far with wins over Maryland-Eastern Shore 75-57 on the road and an 87-53 thrashing of Mount St. Mary’s at home. A November 24 visit to Rhode Island will provide a chance to gauge the teams’ progress against quality opposition.

The University of Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC) will not sneak up on anyone this season after last years surprise run to the final of the conference tourney. The team lost their two top scorers from last season but return three solid players in Chauncey Gilliam, Justin Fry and Matt Spadafora. The team has opened with home court setbacks, losing to Morgan State 72-57 and Loyola-Maryland 69-66 in local derbies. The Retrievers have tough road trips to Penn State and Virginia Tech in December before settling into conference play.

At New Hampshire, the Wildcats are coming off their best season in fifteen years and return steady guard Alvin Abreau to lead the way as three quality freshmen arrive on campus to complement the nine returning players. The team opens its season with a November 20 visit to ACC team Maryland.

The Hartford Hawks limped to a 7-26 record after losing top guard Joe Zeglinski to injury only ten games into last season. With a healthy Zeglinski, all of the Hawk starters return as the team is set to make amends for last season. The addition of three newcomers will help solidify the team. After a loss to Quinnipiac 84-76 to kick off the season the team ventured into Texas and nearly came away with an upset of highly fancied Baylor before losing in a 71-69 thriller. The teams’ morale was at a high for their home opener where they brutalized Marist 75-38. A future high exposure contest sees the team traveling to Kentucky in late December.

Although Maine returns four starters from last years sub par 9-21 squad, the Black Bears may find the going tough again this season in spite of a one win, one loss start. A narrow road win over Fordham 76-73 and a close 56-53 victory at Delaware State sandwiched a heart breaking 72-71 loss at Norfolk State. December visits to Connecticut, Syracuse and Boston College could get ugly as the Black Bears try to gain credibility.

As far as predictions go, look for Vermont and Boston University to finish at or near the top with Stony Brook as a possible surprise team.